COSTCO SERVICES
Update
To learn more about our complete suite of Costco services, click on the “Services” link at Costco.com or call toll-free 1-800-220-6000.
BREAKING NEWS
Costco Services
goes mobile
PRACTICAL TIP
Merchants: Your real
card processing rate
DO YOU KNOW the real rate you are paying
for credit card processing? Many processors
will advertise an extremely attractive qualified rate when they know that most of the
merchant’s transactions will not qualify for
that rate.
What is your real rate? You can determine that by some simple analysis of your
credit card processing statement.
■ First, take the total amount of fees you
are paying.
■ Next, divide that by the total dollar vol-
ume of the transactions you processed.
■ The resulting number is called your
effective rate—the average rate
you pay per transaction.
Elavon provides Costco members with
exclusive processing rates backed by excellent service. For more information, call toll-free 1-800-616-1935 (source code 83200), or
go to Costco.com and search “merchant.”
3. Toyota Camry 4. Honda Civic 5. Hyundai Elantra The Toyota Camry and Honda Civic are also among the top five cars sold nationwide—not just through CAP—in that same period. Ready for a new ride? CAP provides Costco members access to prearranged, no-hassle pricing, a network of high- quality participating dealerships and loads of online tools for researching. For more information, call toll-free 1-800-458-1692, or go to Costco.com and search “CAP12.” MORE THAN 1 million Costco members have purchased a vehicle through the Costco Auto Program (CAP) in the past five years. What do our members like to drive? Here are the top five requested vehicles so far in 2012, January to May. 1. Toyota Prius 2. Honda CRV Top requested rides for Costco members SERVICE STATS
COSTCO’S FIRST official
app is now available as a free
download for Apple and
Android mobile devices,
including phones and tablets
(see page 9).
Costco Services is a tab
on the app home page, with
access to the full suite of
consumer, insurance and business services.
The Costco Auto Program
and Costco Mortgages Services
are already presented as fully
mobile sites for your portable
devices. More providers will be
adding fully mobile platforms
in the near future. Watch for
announcements on this page
as enhancements are added.
Don’t
forget
to
use
your
on your next trip
to Costco.
Reward
PRACTICAL TIP
Buy versus rent:
Which is best for you?
DAILY NEWS REPORTS describe many
changes in the housing market. Low mortgage rates and plummeting home values
make home ownership an attractive proposition. In fact, home affordability is at a level
not seen since the early 1990s, well below
the housing-market peak reached in 2006,
according to The Wall Street Journal.
“Everyone’s situation will be different
when it comes to buying versus renting,”
says Lauren Kutschka, Costco Services
manager. “Location, personal goals and
individual financial circumstances all need
to be carefully weighed. That’s why it’s
important to have an actual specialist to
talk with when determining if you can be
prequalified for a mortgage.”
Costco Mortgage Services can help you
determine if now is the right time to buy, and
might be able to prequalify you today. For
more information, go to Costco.com and
search “mortgage.”
All services are provided by third parties, may not be available in all areas and are subject to change without notice. Some restrictions apply. See “Services” at Costco.com for applicable terms and conditions.
Costco and its affiliates do not sell cars
or negotiate individual transactions.
AUGUST 2012 ;e Costco Connection 97
